The more things change, the more they stay the same; Veza Sur’s Jimmy Amador teaches us how to keep up in the breakneck pace of Miami’s mixological culture.

“What’ll you have?” It’s a question that, more than any other, almost effortlessly releases the tangle of stress surrounding the shoulders of your average, workaday modern Miamian. For most bartenders, it’s a formality, what one must say to properly prod the commercial exchange of hard-earned dollar for much-valued libation. For Jimmy Amador, bartender and face of Wynwood’s hottest craft brewery Veza Sur, it’s much, much more. More than illuminating you on the seasonally-shifting craft beer menu or magically mixing a number of disparate ingredients into a drop-dead delicious drink (both things Amador is deft at), this barman’s greatest wish is to whisk you through an experience, a relationship that will leave you gaining not only an A+ alcoholic beverage, but, dare we say it, as corny as it might sound…a friend. An exuberant Miami native whose spent years behind the bar, Amador believes that it’s this level of loving service that makes this bar more than just another craft brewery. “The primary role behind any bar is to take care of your guests,” says Amador, who, along with the rest of the Veza Sur staff, was immersed in a rigorous beer-training program prior to opening. “If you have a bar with 16 stools, you should treat it as a table of 16. If I can have a full-on conversation between the Hialeah hipster covered in tats and the retired couple from Des Moines visiting Miami for the first time, then I know I’m doing my job.” And, always eager to tout the benefits of his beloved bar, Amador has only two words for those skeptical of that increasingly popular concoction, the beer cocktail: Don’t be. “Together with the good folks at BarLab, we’ve created a dynamic beer cocktail program that’s frankly unbeatable,” he says. “From batching our own housemade Campari, to fresh-squeezed citrus, to incredible foams and reductions, we do it all!”

Two mega-boat shows in town. Perfect weather. It’s time to take the family and
friends out for a dinner cruise. Pay close attention to these yacht chef secrets to make things a little smoother out on the high seas.